Jellico’s town leaders were divided this week over changing an ordinance regulating who can sell beer.

Last Thursday the board passed the first reading of an amendment to a 1968 ordinance that would ease some of the restrictions for businesses that sell beer in Jellico. The current ordinance prohibits businesses within 2,000 feet of churches or schools from selling beer. The proposed amendment would reduce this restriction to 300 feet. The changes won’t take affect until a second reading is passed.

The 230 extra beds the justice center will offer the county are desperately needed. The current facility only has 92 beds, but Campbell County often houses around 200 inmates there, Jail Committee Chairperson Rusty Orick said. Campbell County’s Jail, built in 2007, is even more overcrowded than the former facility, which had 42 beds, Orick said.

“We haven’t fixed the problem we was told to fix by the federal judge,” Orick said.

Hotel owner Jay Patel told town leaders he intends to bring a Holiday Inn Express to Caryville. Patel shared his plans to turn the old Christmas Tree Inn into an active hotel at Caryville’s board of mayor and aldermen meeting on March 12.